IPOH: A 42-year-old woman is pleading to ah long to stop harassing her family after her car was set on fire.
The woman, who only wanted to be known as Yip, said she found a note on her car with the message: "Call me back, settle your problem..." directed to her sister-in-law.
Two phone numbers with the Singapore country code were included in the note.
"I believe we're being targeted by ah long (money lenders) due to my sister-in-law's dealings with them.
"I want them to know that we are not the ones who borrowed money," she said in a press conference organised by Ipoh Barat MCA coordinator Low Guo Nan Tuesday (Nov 15).
Yip said neighbours alerted her to the incident on Monday (Nov 14) morning and helped to put out the fire on her car.
Low assured the family that the police would be looking into their case.
"I have reached out to the police and they will be investigating the incident as a criminal case. I have also asked them to increase their surveillance in the area so the family will feel safer," Low said.
Yip's mother-in-law, who only wanted to be known as Cheng, said her daughter claimed that it was her ex-boyfriend who had borrowed money from an ah long in Singapore.
"I've asked her to please settle the matter. My daughter has not lived here for over 20 years. Please leave us alone as we are innocent," she said, adding that she was worried for the safety of her four grandchildren in the house.
Cheng said her daughter, who was in her 40s, apologised after hearing about the incident. The 62-year-old retiree had not seen her daughter since 2019.
Low said incidents involving ah long from Singapore harassing families in Ipoh had increased in the past year.
"We are seeing at least two to three reports per month," he said.
He urged those affected by ah long to never engage with them directly or to contact any phone numbers that were given.
"The first thing they should do if they receive such threats is to make a police report. We had a case earlier this year where a father was harassed by ah long because of his son.
"He thought he could settle the son's debt by contacting them directly. Despite paying them off, the ah long then targeted the father and harassed him," Low said.
